14

Question 1

just-war theory

Answer 1

A theory of ethics that defines when war is morally permissible and what means of warfare are justified.

Question 2

Keynesian economics

Answer 2

A demand-side economic policy, first presented by John Maynard Keynes after World War I, that encouraged deficit spending by governments during economic recessions in order to provide jobs and boost income.

Question 3

kitchen cabinet

Answer 3

An informal name for the president’s closest advisers.

Question 4

Kyoto Protocol

Answer 4

An international treaty aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Question 5

laissez-faire capitalism

Answer 5

The economic philosophy that the government should not interfere with the economy.

Question 6

lawmaking

Answer 6

The power to make rules that are binding on all people in a society.

Question 7

layer-cake federalism

Answer 7

A term used to describe federalism through most of the nineteenth century, in which the federal and state governments each had their own issue areas, that rarely overlapped; also known as dual federalism.

Question 8

legislative agenda

Answer 8

A series of laws a person wishes to pass.

Question 9

legitimacy

Answer 9

Acceptance by citizens of the government.

Question 10

Lemon test

Answer 10

A three-part test to determine if the establishment clause has been violated; named for the 1971 case Lemon v. Kurtzman.

Question 11

libel

Answer 11

Printing false statements that defame a person’s character.

Question 12

liberalism

Answer 12

A theory of international relations that deemphasizes the importance of military power in favor of economic power, trade, and international institutions.

Question 13

libertarianism

Answer 13

The belief that government should be small and most decisions left up to the individual.

Question 14

liberty

Answer 14

The freedom to do what one chooses as long as one does not harm or limit the freedom of other people.

Question 15

limited government

Answer 15

A government that places few restrictions on its citizens’ choices and actions, and in which the government is limited in what it can do.

Question 16

limited jurisdiction

Answer 16

A court’s power to hear only certain kinds of cases.

Question 17

limited war

Answer 17

A war fought primarily between professional armies to achieve specific political objectives without causing widespread destruction.

Question 18

line-item veto

Answer 18

A special type of veto that the president can use to strike the specific parts of the bill he or she dislikes without rejecting the entire bill.

Question 19

line organization

Answer 19

In the government bureaucracy, an agency whose head reports directly to the president.

Question 20

literacy test

Answer 20

Historically, a test that must be passed before a person can vote; designed to prevent blacks from voting.